Homemade Snake Repellent - Top Five Options

Homemade Snake Repellent - Top Five Options
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Making Your Own Homemade Snake Repellent

Snakes can pose a real threat in certain regions of North America. Rather than paying a high price for snake repellent, try mixing up a homemade snake repellent instead. Snakes can be pretty harmless reptiles; however, there are several breeds of dangerous snakes; some snakes bite with venom and others suffocate their victims. Below are a few homemade snake repellents to try. [caption id=“attachment_171628” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]Homemade snake repellent can help with nuisance snakes Snakes can be mostly harmless, but still be a nuisance[/caption] Note that you need to be especially careful around snakes - especially if you aren’t sure which species it is. If you run across the world’s largest snake - a reticulated python, you may want to run the other way.

Cinnamon Oil and Clove Oil

This homemade snake repellent should be used directly on the snake; it is a good repellent to keep on your person, along with pepper spray for human attackers. Wildlife services have found that spraying either cinnamon oil or clove oil on a snake will make it vacate the area. Generally, the snake will slither in the opposite direction of the spray or to a sheltered area; therefore avoid spraying the snake from behind in case it retreats in your direction. Be sure to read the Wildlife Services technical note linked above for more details.

Powdered Sulfur

This repellent is non-toxic, but before making the repellent remember to put on a mask covering your nose and mouth because sulfur smells awful. The advantage to this snake repellent is that you can put it in the cracks of your house to prevent the invasion of snakes rather than having to attack them once they have invaded. It is common to add mothballs to the sulfur; however, these are toxic and can cause sickness and diarrhea, so they should not be used in a house with children or animals as they can be deadly if swallowed.

Cayenne Pepper

[caption id="" align=“aligncenter” width=“600”]Homemade snake repellent myth - Cayenne Pepper Cayenne Pepper is not an effective snake repellent[/caption]

The least effective homemade repellent is cayenne pepper; it frequently is found on the snake repellent charts, yet the results are not promising. The myth is that the heat from the cayenne pepper will burn the snake’s skin, but snakes have resilient scaly skin, so it is ineffective. Use the moth balls, sulfur powder or oil mixtures instead.

Gardening

[caption id="" align=“aligncenter” width=“600”]Short grass can be an effective homemade snake repellent Repel snakes with well groomed lawns[/caption]

Making your garden less attractive to snakes will prevent them from taking up residence on your premises. They will continue on their way to your neighbors’ more attractive gardens. Keeping your grass short will give them nowhere to hide. Also, making sure that there are no piles of debris lying around will make your yard less attractive to snakes. If you have a particular problem with snakes, then construct a mesh fence around your property four feet deep and three feet high. Or consider turning your grassy yard into a gravelled paradise, because slithering over gravel can act as a homemade snake deterrent and snakes will avoid it where possible.

Predators

[caption id="" align=“aligncenter” width=“600”]Cats are an effective homemade snake repellent Cats are a natural predator to snakes[/caption]

Finally, you could depend on the food chain. Cats will get rid of your snake problem; however you have to be prepared for your cat to carry a dead snake in through its cat flap looking at you for praise. If felines are not your friend, then man’s best friend might be a good substitute, but bear in mind that while some dogs will kill snakes, others fear snakes. To summarize, while some snakes are harmless they can quickly turn dangerous; even pet snakes can turn aggressive on their owners. Pet lovers could consider buying or adopting a cat, because while the furry felines look adorable they are lean, mean snake killing machines. They may not be what you consider a homemade snake repellent, but they get the job done.

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